


the stranger in the carriage.

by inkreves



Category: Caraval Series - Stephanie Garber
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, POV Jacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-01
Updated: 2020-02-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:48:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22504294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkreves/pseuds/inkreves
Summary: Jacks took a moment to observe the woman sitting across from him. She looked young, younger than he did, and utterly baffled.Lost, then? Separated from someone?He lapped at the bitemark he’d left in his apple but didn’t take another bite. Perhaps she’d arrived with Legend’s performers – but hadn’t their carriages reached the castle before the sun went down?or: Jacks and Donatella's meeting, from the perspective of Jacks
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27





	the stranger in the carriage.

**Author's Note:**

> the dialogue in this work is taken directly from the original scene in _legendary._ this will also be the case if i write more of these alt-pov pieces.

It was dark by the time the carriage from the Satine District pulled in to the carriage house by the docks. The cool night breeze whispering through the open window was soon replaced by the orange warmth of the lanterns lining the walls of the stop.  
  
Jacks huffed, sprawled across the seats in a way that would have made the empress cringe.  
  
The thought dragged a smile onto his face as he sank his teeth into the untouched flesh of his heaven-white apple, staring out the window as he waited for the carriage to move and the oppressive warmth to be replaced once more with the cool kiss of night.  
  
He paid no mind to the voices outside, perking up when the carriage jostled. _Finally,_ he thought, his eyes remaining locked on the lantern-lit walls, anticipating the slow trundle of movement as the carriage started. _Why aren’t we moving?_  
  
An answer to his unspoken question came in the form of a young woman climbing into the compartment – _his_ compartment – and nestling herself into the seat across from him. She paid him little more than a passing glance, just to see who she was riding with, then looked away again.  
  
_How dare you._  
  
Jacks took a moment to observe the woman sitting across from him. She looked young, younger than he did, and utterly baffled. _Lost, then? Separated from someone?_ He lapped at the bitemark he’d left in his apple but didn’t take another bite. Perhaps she’d arrived with Legend’s performers – but hadn’t their carriages reached the castle before the sun went down?  
  
“You can’t ride in here,” he told her at last, making a show of gazing out the window as the carriage finally – _finally_ – sailed off into the night, taking them up, up, and up above a city made of starlight. He bit into his apple again, disenchanted.  
  
“Pardon me?”  
  
_Oh, goody._ “You heard me clearly. You need to get out.” He finally turned away from the window, watching through a lazy side-eye as her expression soured. The corner of Jacks’ mouth twitched.  
  
“If you don’t wish to ride with me, you can get out,” she sniffed.  
  
Slowly, Jacks tilted his head, disguising his amusement by curling his lips into a grimace, as though he’d swallowed something bitter. He sucked his teeth and narrowed his eyes at her.  
  
“You must be one of Legend’s performers,” he laughed, the cruelty in the sound earning a look of unease from the woman. Jacks sat up, swinging his legs down from the seat and planting them firmly as he leant closer, arms resting loosely over his lap, forgotten apple held between his middle finger and thumb. “I wonder if you could help me with something I’ve been curious about,” he drawled. “I’ve heard Legend’s performers never truly die. So maybe I’ll push you out to see if the rumours are true.”  
  
_There._ Almost imperceptibly, woman winced, and a pang of her anxiety filled him briefly before it was gone. _Interesting._  
  
“Not if I shove you out first,” she fired back despite herself, and it almost hurt Jacks to repress his laughter.  
  
He smiled at her then, flashing dimples and baring teeth, a look that was more sinister than warm. _I’m going to have fun with you,_ he thought as he sat back, but did not resume lounging on the seat. Instead, he kept his eyes trained on her and purred, “Careful, pet. You might be one of the empress’s guests, but many in her court are not as forgiving as I am.” Once again, he smiled. “And I’m not forgiving at all.”  
  
Jacks took a final bite of his apple, the resounding crunch far louder than he’d anticipated, and dropped it onto the floor, unable to stop his cold smile when it landed on the woman’s slipper. She kicked it away and turned to look out the window, pretending he didn’t worry her. _Oh, but I do. I can feel it._  
  
Letting his eyes slip shut, Jacks swung his legs back up onto the seat and sighed.


End file.
